Clippers give super-sub Jamal Crawford a start

Here’s the Los Angeles Times reporting on Clippers scoring guard Jamal Crawford making a rare appearance in the starting lineup:

To his surprise, Jamal Crawford started for the Clippers when they played the Washington Wizards on Saturday night at the Verizon Center.

Clippers Coach Doc Rivers said he started Crawford in place of Willie Green because he wanted more spacing for the first unit and to take some of the ball handling pressure off Chris Paul.

It worked out, as Crawford scored 17 points in the Clippers’ victory over the Wizards.

Crawford started his first game since April 9, 2012, when he was with the Portland Trail Blazers.

“You can be a lot more patient when you’re a starter, because you know you’re going to be out there some,” Crawford said. “When you come off the bench, you kind of have to make a positive impact immediately, whether it’s scoring or assisting. But as a starter, you can pick your spots a lot.”